US and Australia invite China to war games

The US and Australia will invite China to take part in joint naval and military exercises in a move that highlights the changing balance of power in the Pacific.

By Bonnie Malkin in Sydney and Malcolm Moore in Shanghai

2:20PM BST 03 Sep 2009

Admiral Timothy Keating, the head of the US Pacific Command, said the US and Australia had agreed to make the approach to the Chinese Ministry of Defence.

"We are anxious to engage with them at the earliest opportunity," he told the Sydney Morning Herald. "We want to understand much better than we do now China's intentions. We would say: 'Don't stand in isolation in the Pacific'. China does publish a [defence] white paper but we find it to be less than fulfilling," he said.

He said the exercises could begin with small naval and land activities, and then follow with personnel exchanges. He denied that building ties with China would upset the US's relationships with India, Japan or South Korea, its traditional allies.

The move comes after a fractious few months for Sino-Australian relations, during which China detained Stern Hu, an Australian citizen working for Rio Tinto, the mining company.

Australia then upset Beijing by granting a visa to Rebiya Kadeer, an ethnic Uighur leader who China blames for recent race riots.

Stephen Smith, the Australian foreign minister, said economic ties would override the hiccups. Trade between Australia and China is now worth £32 billion. "We need to take a long-term view of our relationship and we need to be patient," he said.

The Chinese Defence ministry was unavailable for comment, while China's military universities also declined to comment on the possibility of military co-operation.

The approach from the US came as China said it would parade five new missiles, including a nuclear intercontinental missile, in a show of its military prowess on October 1, the 60th anniversary of Communist Party rule.

Chinese state media said that nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles, conventional cruise missiles, and medium and short range missiles would be put on public display for the first time.

"These missiles are domestically designed and manufactured and have never been officially reported before," said a source from the Second Artillery Force. He added that the missiles were "second generation" and all battle-ready.

He added that China was currently developing a third generation of missiles and was catching up with the US and Russia in terms of its technology. "Our second generation can match their third and fourth generations, and the third generation under development is comparable to their fifth and sixth generations," he said.

Weapon experts are hoping to see the Dongfeng 41, known as the DF-41, and the CSS-X-10, which is said to be a third-generation, solid-fuel, intercontinental ballistic missile. The Julang 2 could also make a show. The missile is said to have a range of about 5,000 miles and is designed to be launched from nuclear submarines.